The Film You Didn’t See – Who’s the Alien, Cowboy? |
The Film You Didn’t See – Who’s the Alien, Cowboy?
Cultural Weekly
2011-08-25
Marcia Alesan Dawkins, Visiting Scholar
Brown University
Ulli K. Ryder, Visiting Scholar
Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in America
Brown University
Chances are you didn’t see Cowboys and Aliens. The film won’t get to $100 million box office in the US, and it is sinking fast overseas as well. There’s even been collateral damage—in the wake of its lackluster performance, Disney has put the brakes on the even-more-expensive Lone Ranger, to have starred Johnny Depp.
Cowboys and Aliens didn’t get audience traction because of mixed genres and mixed reviews, but the most intriguing aspect audiences and critics alike missed is the film’s approach to mixed races and mixed species. The movie is an overt critique of colonialism and racism. Think we’re reaching for subtext? Well, it’s about as obvious as a gigantic spaceship hovering over the Western sky…
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Tags: Cultural Weekly, Marcia A. Dawkins, Marcia Alesan Dawkins, Marcia Dawkins, Ulli K. Ryder, Ulli Kira Ryder, Ulli Ryder